Atari announces 'Tempest 4000'

ATARI

Coming "soon" for PC and consoles from Atari is Tempest 4000, a reboot of the classic coin-op arcade game Tempest from the 1980s.

The game is being developed Jeff Minter (Gridrunner) and Atari is saying that Tempest 4000 will remain "faithful to the original fast-paced gameplay while adding exciting new features and gorgeous graphics for audiences on the most popular contemporary platforms."

The original Tempest came out in 1981 and was one of the first video games to use 3D vector graphics. It has been featured prominently across pop culture – including in Ernest Cline’s dystopian Ready Player One novel.

“At the end of the day, video gamers always win,” said Jeff Minter, Executive Producer of Tempest 4000 and founder of Llamasoft. “I am very happy to work with Atari again to bring a long-awaited sequel of Tempest to our legion of fans and a new generation of gamers worldwide.”

Just as in the original game, players are once again in control of the Claw, a powerful spacecraft equipped to destroy deadly creatures and other obstructions with rapid-fire shots on vibrant geometric prisms. With three game modes to choose from and 100 levels to conquer, players must eliminate all enemies as quickly as possible to survive, aiming for the coveted spot at the top of the leaderboards.